Landscape Lines 12: Treatment of Plant Features
Landscape Lines 12: Treatment of Plant Features. Cultural Landscape Guidance Documents. Landscape Lines 12. NPS Park Cultural Landscapes Program. Washington, D.C.
A guide to the Treatment of Plant Features, part of the Landscape Lines series from the Park Cultural Landscapes Program. The dynamic qualities inherent in natural systems differentiate cultural landscapes from other cultural resources. Plant and animal communities associated with human settlement and land use can reflect the social, economic, ornamental, or traditional uses of the land. Vegetation is considered a biotic cultural resource when it can be linked to an established period of significance and adds to the overall significance of the landscape. Vegetation is one of the landscape characteristics commonly associated with historical development of a cultural landscape, or resulting from cultural activities on the land. Features associated with vegetation are identified as either a system, an aggregation of plants, or an individual plant; all of these have distinct or noteworthy characteristics in a landscape. It is vital to understand the degree to which change contributes to or compromises the historic character of a cultural landscape, and how natural cycles influence ecological processes within a landscape. This guidance document describes the process of historic research, existing conditions investigation, and analysis and evaluation conducted in preparation for a Cultural Landscape Report (CLR), specifically as it relates to vegetation. It addresses the importance of determining how vegetation features contribute to the significance of a cultural landscape, and how this influences treatment activities.
- Type
- Published Report
- Publisher
- NPS Park Cultural Landscapes Program
- Units
- CRPS
- Keywords
- aggregation, biotic cultural resource, CRSS, Herbarium, Natural System, Plant Inventory, plant replacement, Propagation, treatment strategy, Vegetation